Posted by Dr. Katrin Krohn, German Aerospace Center, Institute of Planetary Research

Haulani is one of the most prominent features on Ceres. The impact crater has bright interior and extensive ejecta with farranging crater rays of about 160 km to 490 km. Haulani shows an overall smooth bright crater floor with flow features and some cracks in the floor’s northwestern part, parallel to the impact crater rim. This crater exhibits a hummocky elongated mountainous ridge in the central part of the crater with flows running downslope the ridge crest ponding toward mass-wasting deposits of the rim. Pits occur on the crater floor and in parts of Haulani’s ejecta. Since Ceres shows evidence of a volatile-rich crust, the pits are likely due to rapid post-impact outgassing of hydrated salts or ground ice.

Image 1: Color mosaic of Haulani, showing the diverse morphology of the crater.

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